New York State Education Department
TASC Transition Curriculum: Workshop 3
Teachers turning into students? It's not Freaky Friday! It's a thoughtful workshop that teaches participants how to plan professional development for staff. Third in a 15-part series, the workshop provides a platform for the other...
Curated OER
Phase Changes of Water
A micro-unit on the phase changes of water includes three laboratory activities. Junior scientists compare the densities of ice and water, and then they do the same for cold and warm water. They examine freezing and boiling temperatures....
PBS
Primary Source Set: Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
What did Jo write her stories with? How did the March sisters dress? A primary source set designed for Louisa May Alcott's Little Women prompts learners to look over images of household items and clothes from the 1860s before...
Mathalicious
XBOX Xpotential
Touchdown! This is an exponentially insightful lesson that explores the growth of football games with different video game consoles. Class members discuss whether the increase of mergahertz can be described as linear or exponential....
Mathalicious
Out of Left Field
A baseball trajectory and a parabola seem to make the best pair in real-world quadratic applications. Here is a current baseball resource with questions, discussions, and explorations regarding a quadratic function and home run...
EngageNY
Grade 12 ELA Module 1: Unit 1, Lesson 23
Malcolm X's journey to Cairo, his Hajj, his Letter from Mecca detailing his insights into "true Islam," and his transition to Al-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz are the focus of the discussion of chapter 17 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X.
EngageNY
Determining Main Idea Using Text and Illustrations: Accessing Books Around the World
Ease into informational text with the lesson suggested here. Part of a unit series, the lesson draws from previous lessons and acts as a natural moment to add in informational text. Class members read one section of My Librarian is a...
Curated OER
Melting, Freezing, and More!: Phase Transitions
Third graders listen to a talk on phase transitions and view three demonstrations. In this phases of matter lesson, 3rd graders complete a worksheet as they listen about phase transitions. They move through three demonstrations of phase...
Curated OER
Prop Box
What other uses can you brainstorm for a key? What about a pair of sunglasses? Bring a bag of props into your classroom and have learners create different uses for a selection of objects. Then, after everyone has shared, translate the...
Curated OER
Informative Essay Writing
High schoolers start by drawing Mr. Essay Man, who is supposed to illustrate the different parts of an essay. After discussing what each component should contain, writers start their essay, guided by the teacher and class discussion....
Curated OER
Literary Response and Analysis Theme Literature
Analyze the central idea or literary theme found in a series of quotes from the Shakespearean play, Hamlet. For literary analysis, learners paraphrase excerpts from the play and then identify the characters' motivations for their speech.
EngageNY
Peer Critique and Revising: Formal English
Dear Sir or Madam: What's the difference between formal and informal language? Scholars focus on using formal English and transitions in their position papers. After revising their rough drafts, they engage in the peer editing process...
Channel Islands Film
Island Cattle Ranching
Is cattle ranching on Santa Rosa island viable or non-viable? Rather than focusing on the issues of the transition of Santa Rosa island from a privately owned island cattle ranch to a national park, class members are asked to consider if...
EngageNY
Building Background Knowledge About Physical Environment: What Makes it Hard for Some People to Get Books?
How far would your pupils go to be able to have access to books? Revisit Heather Henson and David Small's That Book Woman and challenge class members to take on the role of Cal or the Book Woman. By putting themselves in someone else's...
Curated OER
Which is Closer to 1?
A seemingly simple question that reveals a lot about a student's understanding of fractions. In finding an answer, learners compare fractions with different denominators that are both greater and less than one. No number line is...
Curated OER
Same Theme, Different Story Using Fox by Margaret Wild
Middle schoolers work with themes in this instructional activity, which is based on Fox by Margaret Wild. Because the book has multiple themes, it is a great way to transition into exploring literary analysis and writing stories. A Six...
Curated OER
Connectives
Using connectives and conjunctions is an easy way to vary sentence structure. Third graders review the given connectives, then use them to combine two simple sentences. The second section allows learners to use more words and phrases as...
Curated OER
Quadrant D: Bringing Learning to a New Level
As young learners prepare to be successful in the 21st century, teachers can promote critical thinking by implementing Quadrant D learning activities.
EngageNY
Find Solutions to Make Equations True
The truth is always best. Individuals continue to find values that make equations true in the 26th installment of the 36-part module. The only difference is that they now call them solutions to those equations.
Curated OER
Everyone Can Benefit from Professional Development
These resources will point you in the direction of valuable professional development opportunities.
Mathalicious
Three Shots
To foul or not to foul, that is the basketball question. High schoolers look at the probability that fouling out a player and allowing free throws yields a better outcome than allowing the original shot. The resource provides a...
Curated OER
Narrative Writing
Binoculars are used as a metaphor for good descriptive writing. Class members first view a small picture and then an enlarged view of the same image in which the details come into focus. Next, learners examine a paragraph lacking sensory...
EngageNY
Close Reading of Nasreen's Secret School: How Do People Access Books in Afghanistan?
Third graders continue to practice the close reading skills of capturing the gist and reading again for important details in the sixth lesson plan in a larger unit. This is a great beginning-of-the-year unit for establishing visible...
Curated OER
"User Friendly" Cause and Effect
Bring literature to life with your SMART board and this literary analysis lesson plan. While reading "User Friendly" by T. Ernesto Bethancourt (from the Holt Elements of Literature textbook by Kylene Beers), have your class discuss the...